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TODAY IN KENTUCKY HISTORY

Kentucky Trivia ● Kentucky Tweets

On March 8, 1777, Native Americans set fires to isolated cabins around Fort Harrod to draw the settlers out.  Some settlers fought through the woods and made it to the fort, with four settlers wounded and one killed.

On March 8, 1780, Colonel Richard Callaway, Pemberton Rawlings, and three enslaved people worked on a ferry boat about a mile above Boonesborough when the Shawnees fired upon them.  They scalped, burned, and then rolled the Colonel in mud.  Pemberton Rawlings also died.  The two pioneers were buried in a single grave within the old Boonesborough Fort.  One slave escaped to tell the news, and Native Americans captured the other two.

Kentucky Trivia:  “Probably no single man accomplished more than did Colonel Richard Callaway in laying the foundation that culminated in the admission of Kentucky into the Union on June 1, 1792.”  This was a quote by R. Alexander Bate in an article published in The Filson Club History Quarterly.

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Wayne County native Preston Hopkins Leslie, Kentucky’s 26th governor, born in 1819.

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Lexington native Mary Deshea, born in 1850; she was one founder of the Daughters of the American Revolution.

March 8, 1898, Murray native Nathan B. Stubblefield received patent #US600457A for the electric battery.

March 8, 1908, Flemingsburg native Herman “Ivory” Chittison, jazz pianist, died.

Tuesday, March 8, 1910, Georgetown College hosted State University, Lexington (UK) and lost 24-23 in Buell Armory Gymnasium. 

March 8, 1918, the first Kentucky High School basketball Tournament took place at Centre College in Danville.  Lexington High School beat Somerset to win the championship.

Localtonians wish a Happy Birthday to Park native, Louie Broady Nunn, Kentucky’s 52nd governor, born in 1924.  Park is located in Barren County.

March 8, 1951, the following died in the Korean War:
Army MSG James I. Burns from Pike County
Army PFC Willie l. Collier from Floyd County
Army PVT Allen Higgs Jr. from Daviess County
Navy LCDR John J. Magda from Camp Taylor in Jefferson County
Army CPL Irvin H. Packo from Christian County
Army PFC William T. Wirotzious from Jefferson County

March 8, 1953, Army PVT Clifford E. Sizemore from Whitley County died in the Korean War.

March 8, 1961, President John Kennedy met with Kentucky Governor Bert Combs, center, and Senator John Sherman Cooper, right, to discuss aid for the depressed Appalachian coal region.

March 8, 1968, Army SP4 Larry R. Redmon from Salvisa in Mercer County died in the Vietnam War.

March 8, 1969, the following died in the Vietnam War: 
Army CPL Alfred E. Alvey Jr. from Morganfield in Union County
Army SGT Jewell C. Blankenship from Hopkinsville Christian County
Army CPT Emrath P. John from Lexington
Air Force LtCOL Paul E. Garrett from Bowling Green in Warren County
Army PFC Paul D. Haydon from Louisville
Army SP4 John R. Hornsby 19470113 from Paducah McCracken County

March 8, 1971, Muhammad Ali (31-1) fought Joe Frazier (27-0) in Madison Square Garden.  In “The Fight of the Century,” the two men split an unprecedented $5 million purse for the richest and most publicized bout in history.  Ali called Frazier an Uncle Tom.  Frazier fumed and trained like never before.  Frazier won a unanimous 15-round decision in one of the fiercest fights of all time while handing Ali his first loss.

March 8, 1971, Army 1LT John D. Hale from Brandenburg in Meade County died in the Vietnam War.

March 8, 1976, Jack Givens lead a late rally with Rick Robey and Mike Phillips as the Wildcats outlasted the Bulldogs in an exciting overtime win.  It was the last UK’s men regular season game at Memorial Coliseum.

Kentucky Trivia:  The last time Memorial Coliseum played home to the men’s UK basketball team was an exhibition game against Marathon Oil in November 1976.  Five days later they opened their season in Rupp Arena.

March 8, 1976, Kentucky Senate Bill 150 designated the Kentucky coffee tree as the official tree of the Commonwealth.  Today the state tree is the Tulip Poplar.

March 8, 1986, Coach Sutton and the UK Wildcats beat Alabama, 83-72 in the SEC Tournament finals at Rupp Arena in Lexington.

March 8, 1991, Marine Corps CPT Reginald Underwood from Lexington died fighting in the Desert Storm.

March 8, 2014, Santa Anita Park hosts the GII $300,500 San Felipe Stakes for three-year-olds.

March 8, 2020, UK rebooted their computer system to end a month-long cyberattack they said was the most substantial cyber intrusion in University history.

Sunday, March 8, 2020, Kentucky announced three cases of coronavirus, bringing the state total to four in Harrison, Fayette, and Jefferson Counties.  Simultaneously, the Surgeon General told the public, “masks do not work for the general public.”  Also on this day, Dr. Fauci stated on 60 Minutes “people should not be walking around with masks on.”

March 8, 2021, for the 1st time in a year, Lexington students returned to middle and high schools where they practiced covid-19 protocols.  These included temperature checking, masks, desk shields if requested, contact tracing, and SOP for students entering and leaving classes.